Intermittent fasting (IF) isn’t always a straight line from “overweight” to “after photo.” Discover how Kylee used non-traditional methods to lose 50 pounds with intermittent fasting.
For Kylee, a 29‑year‑old teacher living in Klamath Falls, Oregon, IF showed up after she’d already lost a big chunk of weight—and became the tool that helped her maintain, heal, and rebuild her life through some very hard seasons.
Kylee – Intermittent Fasting Story
This is Kylee’s non‑traditional intermittent fasting success story.
The “Wake‑Up Call” Photo
Kylee’s struggle with weight started in college.
At 5’4″, she saw her highest recorded weight hit 197 pounds. She wasn’t weighing often, but she knew she didn’t feel good in her body.
The moment that finally shook her awake was a photo from a family birthday party.
She called it the “Slap-in-the-Face photo needed to jumpstart my official life-changing, No-More-Yo-Yo Dieting Weight Loss Journey.”
It was a classic “I can’t keep doing this” moment.
Starting with a Nutritionist and Calorie Tracking
Kylee didn’t jump straight into intermittent fasting.
Her first real weight loss effort came through working with a nutritionist—thanks to her mom, who had offered to help for years without pushing.
With the nutritionist, Kylee:
- Tracked everything she ate
- Had weekly check‑ins and accountability
- Learned how to make better food choices and portion sizes
Her “good student” personality kicked in. She treated the process like school—showing up prepared, following the plan, and wanting that “A+” every week.
The weekly weigh‑ins and food logs started paying off. She consistently lost weight, and her nutritionist often told her, “You’re doing great; I don’t have much to correct.” That quiet encouragement kept her going.
By the time she accepted a teaching job abroad in Indonesia in 2020, Kylee had dropped down into the 140s—around 148 pounds—her lowest adult weight at that point.
Life in Indonesia: Smallest Size, Big Stress
Indonesia brought a mix of gifts and stress.
On the positive side, Kylee:
- Got to live in a tropical country
- Wore swimsuits without feeling self‑conscious
- Enjoyed being in the smallest body she’d ever had as an adult
But she arrived right as the COVID pandemic exploded.
Schools shut down, classes moved completely online, and the campus turned into a ghost town.
For almost four years the school was fully online. Attempts to reopen led to more cases and more closures. There were strict lockdowns, airport closures, and huge anxiety about sickness and safety.
Socially and emotionally, it was rough.
Discovering Intermittent Fasting as a Maintenance Tool
During all that downtime on a quiet campus, Kylee found herself constantly thinking about food and worrying about regaining the weight she had worked so hard to lose.
She didn’t want to go back to obsessive calorie tracking. She needed something simpler.
Around this time, she started seeing posts on Instagram from a woman named Beth, who was sharing her own intermittent fasting journey.
Kylee’s mom saw the same posts and bought the audiobooks Delay, Don’t Deny and Fast. Feast. Repeat.
Her mom shared her Audible login and said, “If you want to listen, they’re there.”
Kylee listened to both books while walking each day on the quiet campus—and binge‑listened her way into a new mindset about food and fasting.
Very quickly she decided, “Okay, this is what I’m doing now.”
Easing In, Then Moving to a Short Eating Window
Kylee began with a fairly common 16:8 intermittent fasting routine.
At first she:
- Fasted 16 hours
- Ate in an about an 8‑hour window
- Continued tracking for a bit, trying to cram all her usual diet foods into that window
But it was too much food and too much mental load.
She experimented and realized she wasn’t actually hungry for a long eating window. Slowly, she tightened things up, shortening her eating window by about 30 minutes a day until she found a sweet spot.
Eventually, she landed on a flexible 2‑ to 4‑hour eating window—essentially a loose OMAD (One Meal a Day) or 20:4 pattern.
She used the Simple app at the time, which gamified the process by showing milestones like:
- When she was “burning fat”
- When she might be entering autophagy
Those little milestones felt like a game and kept her motivated to stay in the fasted state a bit longer.
What She Loved Most: No Tracking and More Food Freedom
One of the biggest wins Kylee experienced with intermittent fasting was not counting anything.
No more:
- Measuring every bite
- Logging every meal
- Obsessing over calories and macros
Instead, she focused on:
- Fasting Clean (water, black coffee, plain tea)
- Eating her main meal and sometimes a small snack in her window
- Letting hunger—not the clock—guide her within that structure
Even in the middle of intense stress, intermittent fasting became a flexible tool that helped her maintain her weight instead of spiraling backward.
When Stress and Fasting Collide
The stress in Indonesia wasn’t just about COVID and lockdowns.
Over time, the mental load of isolation, cultural pressure, and uncertainty pushed Kylee to what she describes as “the lowest point in my life.”
There were days when:
- Fasting felt easy and natural
- She could coast through her window without much thought
And other days when:
- The humidity, anxiety, and exhaustion would hit hard
- She suddenly felt shaky, light‑headed, or off
- She had to adjust and eat earlier than planned
She sometimes felt frustrated, thinking, “I thought I was adjusted by now.” But she kept perspective. Her body was dealing with a lot more than just an eating schedule.
The important thing: she didn’t quit fasting. She allowed herself flexibility but stayed committed to the practice overall.
Returning Home and Facing a New Kind of Hard
Eventually, the mental strain became too much.
Kylee made the agonizing decision to leave her Indonesia job mid‑year and return to the United States.
For someone who always finishes what she starts, leaving early felt like failure. She struggled with guilt and the feeling that people saw her differently once she decided to go.
Back in Oregon, she also realized her passion for teaching had been burned out by years of post‑COVID classroom chaos. A trusted college professor even told her:
“If you’re already doubting teaching, don’t go back into it right now.”
She spent time in the Salem area, then eventually moved to Klamath Falls, where her older sister lived.
There, she shifted into long‑term substitute work, smaller rural schools, and simpler living.
A Toxic Relationship and Weight Regain
During this transition period, Kylee entered a relationship that eventually turned very toxic.
She kept up her fasting routine, but:
- Her partner didn’t understand it
- He had a “work out hard, eat whatever you want” philosophy
- He pushed her to weigh herself frequently
- He seemed threatened or uncomfortable when she chose to fast instead of eat with him
Though she tried to stand her ground, the emotional stress showed up on the scale. Without even realizing it for a while (because she wasn’t weighing), she gradually regained about 30 pounds.
When the relationship ended, she felt emotionally drained and physically heavier—but also determined not to stay stuck.
Rebuilding Her Life: New Town, New Views, Same Fasting Tool
After the breakup, Kylee moved farther out into the rural county.
She now lives in a tiny town of around 700 people, teaching at a very small school and living on the side of a mountain with a beautiful valley view.
That new environment changed everything:
- She rediscovered walking and hiking
- Exercise stopped feeling like a chore and started feeling like therapy
- She spent more time outside and less time on her phone
She even deleted Facebook and Instagram for a season to clean up her mental space, not just her diet.
Then, a friend gave her a month’s supply of Tirzepatide to try. Kylee was hesitant at first, but thought it might be a helpful re-jumpstart to her weight loss journey.
She lost about 16 pounds fairly quickly and through it all, she continued using intermittent fasting as her anchor.
Her current routine looks something like:
- First snack around 2:30 pm after students leave
- Main meal around 4:30–5:30 pm
- Aiming to close her window by 6:00–6:30 pm
She’s noticed that if she eats much later, her sleep quality drops—so she pays attention and honors that.
What She Eats Now: Simple, Clean, and Satisfying
Kylee keeps her food fairly simple and nutrient‑dense.
Typical meals include:
- A protein: chicken, salmon, sausage, or another meat
- A veggie: roasted vegetables, salads, or sautéed greens
Recently, she’s started experimenting with a meal kit service to:
- Make cooking more interesting
- Add variety without the mental load of planning
- Stay aligned with her clean, whole‑food approach
She doesn’t chase perfection. She focuses on mostly whole foods, enough protein, and meals that truly satisfy her in that short eating window.
“IF” Challenges
For Kylee, the hardest part of intermittent fasting isn’t the hunger—it’s the social side.
Some examples:
- Coworkers eating lunch while she fasts through the school day
- People assuming she’s judging their food choices when she’s not eating
- Trying to explain IF briefly without launching into a full life story
She often adjusts her window for social events or special occasions.
But in everyday situations, she mostly stays quiet unless people ask. If someone seems genuinely interested, she’ll mention a book or share a resource instead of lecturing.
She knows most people have heard the phrase “intermittent fasting,” but don’t really understand clean fasting or how powerful it can be when done correctly.
She doesn’t chase perfection. She focuses on mostly whole foods, enough protein, and meals that truly satisfy her in that short eating window.
A Flexible, Real‑Life Intermittent Fasting Success Story
Her biggest wins with intermittent fasting include:
- Letting go of obsessive tracking
- Gaining more food freedom and flexibility
- Maintaining a healthy weight range through very stressful seasons
- Building a simple rhythm that supports better sleep, energy, and mental clarity
Most of all, her journey shows that intermittent fasting doesn’t have to be perfect or look like anyone else’s. It can be a customized tool you keep returning to as life changes, helping you feel more like yourself—inside and out.
Kylee’s Biggest Gem
Kylee’s BEST GEM is to “Just Start” intermittent fasting, don’t overcomplicate things, and spend some time figuring out what works and what doesn’t – Tweak it til you make it.
Kylee is an “IF” Rockstar and I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to connect and learn all about her amazing intermittent fasting success journey.
Thanks so much, Kylee! We wish you all the best in all of your future fasting endeavors.
Ready to Start Your Own “IF” Journey?
If you’re ready to start your intermittent fasting journey like Kylee did, check out JEN’S INTERMITTENT FASTING & WEIGHT LOSS 6 WEEK VIDEO COURSE.
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Have a truly BLESSED and BEAUTIFUL Day!
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